French uranium mining company, Orano, has sued the government of Niger after the disappearance of its director and the raiding of its local offices, as military authorities in the west African country tighten their grip on foreign companies and civil society.

“Orano deplores this intervention, for which no legal basis nor reason has been offered,” Orano said in a statement late Tuesday, accusing authorities of arbitrary arrest, illegal detention and “unjust confiscation of the property of Nigerien companies, subsidiaries of Orano and the State of Niger itself.”

The company’s director was reportedly detained earlier this month. The company says the raids in Niamey, the capital, seized staff’s electronic devices and cellphones.

Niger’s military authorities did not respond to a request for comment.

Orano has been operating in Niger, the world’s seventh biggest supplier of uranium, for over 50 years, and holds majority shares in three main uranium mines in Niger. Only one of the mines, near the town of Arlit, is currently operational.

Last year military authorities withdrew the company’s operating permit for the Imouraren uranium mine, with reserves estimated at 200,000 tons. The authorities also took operational control of Orano’s subsidiary, Somaïr, which operates the only active mine. (AP, but headline rejigged)